Saudi king and royal extravagance

2002-09-04 09:27:23
Inter Press Service
4 September 2002
http://ummahnews.com/viewarticle.php?sid=4190
The extravagant vacations of Saudi King Fahd and his
royal retinue in Spain are disproportionate for a
country that has political and social problems,
despite its oil wealth. The 81-year-old king of Saudi
Arabia, Fahd bin Abdul Aziz Al- Saud, accompanied by
nearly all of his children and family members and an
entourage of more than 3,000, has been vacationing on
Spain's Costa del Sol since Aug. 14.
In the posh Mediterranean resort town of Marbella, 450
kms southeast of Madrid, he stays in his palace, a
replica of the White House named "Mar Mar". Just the
preparations of the palace for his visit ran to $185
million.
Luxury villas and 300 rooms in five-star hotels were
rented for the rest of the royal family in and around
Marbella. Chic restaurants and jewelry shops have
cheerfully prepared for the Saudi visitors, who spent
$90 million on their last stay, in 1999.
On this year's visit, which is to be one month longer
than the last one, they are expected to spend as much
as $300 million. Although a boon for Spain's tourist
industry, that sum indicates the Saudi leaders' lack
of concern for their own people.
Emma Bonino, an Italian member of the European
Parliament, said the royal family has more than $600
billion in funds abroad, and is "more interested in
investing them on the international markets than at
home."
Saudi Arabia ranked 71st out of 173 nations on the
United Nations Development Program's (UNDP) latest
Human Development Index, which measures factors like
life expectancy, school enrollment, and distribution
of wealth. Ahead of Saudi Arabia are nations like
Thailand, Venezuela, Colombia and Slovenia. Per capita
income in Saudi Arabia plunged from $35,000 to $7,000
in just 20 years, while the country's Gross National
Product grew just one percent a year on average during
the same period, and its 3.8 percent demographic
growth rate is one of the highest in the world.
Meanwhile, discriminatory policies remain in place,
such as those that keep the princes and their families
separate from the rest of the population, and
especially from the immigrants, who keep the economy
running, not to mention the discrimination against
women. Evidence of that was experienced by Bonino
herself when she visited Saudi Arabia as part of a
delegation sent by the European Parliament's
commission of foreign affairs.
When they were received by the chair of the Saudi
parliament, Salih bin Abdullah bin Humaid, the women
deputies were "denied the honor of a handshake or
eye-to-eye contact," said Bonino, while explanations
that Islam considers women to be different from men
were addressed to the male deputy guests.
Several Spanish media outlets reported that a British
agency has provided a large group of women to
accompany the Saudi men during their vacations in
Spain, on two conditions: the women must be young and
blonde, and must be replaced every 15 days.
Although prostitution is legal in Spain, procuring is
punishable by law. Nevertheless, no authority or
organization has moved against the British agency,
even though the contract was made public. Nor has the
illegal hiring of around 50 active-service police
officers to moonshine as bodyguards for the Saudi
king, princes and princesses been questioned. The
arrangement has been reported by several media
outlets, with no reaction from the government.
On the contrary, King Fahd has been given a royal
welcome, and was visited in Mar Mar by King Juan
Carlos, although according to protocol, the Spanish
sovereign should have received the visiting monarch.
Fahd will also receive visits from Spanish Prime
Minister Jose Maria Aznar and U.S. Secretary of State
Colin Powell. The Saudi monarch and Powell are
expected to discuss present or future U.S. actions
against Iraq, a touchy subject on which the two
countries are publicly divided.
Another question that may be addressed is a lawsuit
that a group of Saudis are preparing against the U.S.
government and several media outlets for
"pyschological and economic damages" suffered since
the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on New York and
Washington.
The lawsuit was announced Aug. 21 in Washington by
Saudi lawyer Katih al Shamri.
The dispute over the succession to the Saudi throne
further compounds Saudi Arabia's social problems and
the difficulties arising from the conflict in the
Middle East and the "war on terrorism" declared by
President George W. Bush, whose government is getting
ready to target Iraq.
Saudi Arabia is important to the United States, as it
accounts for 25 percent of the world's oil reserves,
and 10 percent of global oil production.